Below you will find the February 2014 NLR Parks and Recs Report. I get this report emailed to me on a monthly basis, and have always found it interesting to know what is going on in the Parks in NLR. I will try to share this with you all when I receive it. Paul M. __________________________________________ Maintenance Division: Renovation on the Hospitality House continues. The floor, rock wall around the pavilion, exterior painting and gutters have been completed. This project is slated to be completed by the end March 2014. The Parks Playground Specialist is still in the process of going through the playgrounds making sure that we are in compliance with all of the regulations. The rocket slide has been appraised by the insurance company, however the settlement they have offered is approximately $38,000.00 under what it will cost to replace it. Staff continues the project to repaint all the directional signage in Burns Park and other signage outside of the park. Tree trimming continues around the soccer complex in an attempt to get more sunlight onto the fields. This is also an attempt to aid the fields in the drying process after a rain. Staff has made great progress and will continue working around the fields and along the trails. Staff has completed the monumental task of picking up the cut limbs around the complex. The first application of weed control spray has been put on the fields. Plans and scheduling have begun to top dress all of the fields as soon as the grass starts growing. We are happy to announce that we have a new employee, Zach Gourley, that has joined the soccer maintenance crew. Issues at the youth baseball complex are being addressed, such as drainage of the infield, sprinkler problems, and weed problem on the outside of the fence. Materials have been obtained to install a bollard and cable fence along the back of the complex. All of the lights have been rewired and are now working. The infields at youth baseball have been redone and this will help with the drainage issue. Staff is in the process of rebuilding the pitchers mounds on all of the baseball fields. Prescribed burns were conducted inside Burns Park. Our staff assisted with cutting fire lines prior to the burn. This is a project to help reduce the chance of a wildfire that could destroy our park. Staff is in the process of replacing trees that did not survive the drought from last summer. Staff is still blowing the Arkansas River Trail two times a week due to the safety issues that arise when the trail is covered in leaves. Mulching the leaves in all of the parks continues, along with raising the canopy of the tress. Weed control spraying has been completed on the street islands. Staff is also spraying pre-emergent in the larger areas inside Burns Park in an attempt to reduce the mowing this summer. The following maintenance tasks are completed on a reoccurring basis: Daily: Playground safety inspections Daily: Clean parks and restrooms Daily: Gauge bulk storage fuel tanks and order fuel Daily: Clean Victory Lake restroom Mondays: Check Emerald Park fence line Monday and Thursdays: Dog Park thorough cleanup Fridays: Clean fountain filters Old Mill and Faucette Park Fridays: River trail and soccer trails cleaned Fridays: Old Mill Wheel is greased Fridays: Emerald Park, VA Highland and River trails cleanup Jason Rhodes, Superintendent Parks Maintenance Division _____________________________________________________ Parks Project Coordinators Report Ranger Update: - Average goose count of 85-100 between golf course and soccer complex - weather playing a big part. - Made regular patrols through the parks and trails on foot, bicycle, and motor vehicle. Visited with park patrons and handed out maps, brochures, directions, and discussions of appropriate place to park vehicles. - Purchased a radio-controlled boat and pyrotechnics for additional goose harassment. - Planning to begin search for goose nests. Association Updates: - Met with users of the disc golf course to discuss future plans of the courses. - Finalized an agreement with the Burns Park Athletic Association. Grants: - New birdhouses have been placed at various locations that can be observed from the wildlife observation points. Accreditation: - Submitted the vision and mission statements from our workshop to the Parks and Recreation Commission for their review, and to be discussed at the March 2014 meeting. Will be meeting with staff the first week in March to review these revised statements and begin discussion for department goals. Miscellaneous: - A complete environmental assessment is needed of both the rock quarry and portion of Burns Park as part of the conversion process. - Completed two controlled burns in Burns Park and both were successful in helping to achieve the goals of fuel reduction and habitat enhancement. Upcoming Events: - Waiting on the weather to cooperate to allow the controlled burn in Burns Park to continue. - Lepidoptra Survey coming to Burns Park in the spring (survey of butterflies). - Arkansas Trails Day - May 31, 2014. Jeff Caplinger Project Coordinator _____________________________________________ Shep’s Corner….. The Mayor of North Little Rock introduced me to the public at a special mayor’s press conference on February 26, 2014, and officially declared me the newest and youngest city employee! My handler Ian took me to get a bath that morning and I really felt important. I think everyone liked me. I even got my own city employee identification badge with photo. Wow….did you know my eyes are two different colors? My main job duty is to assist in our Canada Goose management plan by harassing the geese. I started work on February 18, 2014, and got to chase the geese my very first day. I LOVE MY JOB and co-workers. I know I am going to be very happy here!!!
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 21:37:48 +0000
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